“Guard Your Purity, Part 1″ by John MacArthur
John MacArthur,
You probably hear a lot about how much our society has progressed. Whether it’s technological or scientific advancement, breakthroughs in medicine or manufacturing, or any other area where progress can be measured, we’re eager to see how far we’ve come.
At the same time, the culture is willfully blind to how it’s regressing. Sexual perversion and deviance run rampant, and all kinds of immorality are promoted and paraded as if they are something to be proud of.
Our society looks more and more like the no-shame culture of the ancient Roman world—a world devoted to fulfilling perverse lusts and deviant desires. Believers in the New Testament world faced the same kinds of daily temptations we face—perhaps even worse.
But in the midst of that wicked society, Paul gave believers a clear command to abstain from immorality and live holy lives. In 1 Thessalonians 4:3, he wrote, “For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality.”
People often say they’re confused and frustrated with the struggle to find God’s will for their lives. In this passage, Paul spells out God’s will in no uncertain terms. His will is for our sanctification, our spiritual growth. He wants us to be separate from sin—and specifically, sexual immorality.
Those basic instructions would have flown in the face of the common sexual mentality in Thessalonica, just as they contradict the mindset of our modern culture.
Today we’re told that people are basically good, and since they’re basically good and sex is a part of being human, sex is an acceptable way to seek pleasure. We’re also told it’s a fundamental part of our humanity—that it’s a biological need that we shouldn’t deny ourselves. By that skewed definition, casual sex isn’t just a legitimate recreation—it also fulfills our needs. . . .[Continue reading here]
John MacArthur is the pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, president of The Master’s College and The Master’s Seminary, and featured teacher with the Grace to You media ministry. Grace to You radio, video, audio, print, and website resources reach millions worldwide each day.
